Casey Anthony’s former attorney says he believes she’s mentally ill

Jose Baez, attorney for the now infamously acquitted-of-murder Casey Anthony, has written a new book in which he takes readers behind the scenes of the trial involving the mother of the deceased toddler Caylee Anthony.

In the book "Presumed Guilty, Casey Anthony: The Inside Story," Baez decisively describes his former client as mentally ill and that she had created a fantasy world in which she was living before and during the trial.

Baez believes that Anthony’s lies weren’t a sign of guilt, but rather "serious mental health issues."

The Associated Press, who purchased an advance issue of the book prior to its July 3rd release, reports that Baez writes that detectives "should have stopped and realized, 'Wait a minute, we're not dealing with someone who is playing with a full deck.'"

Anthony wove an intricate web of lies during her trial which led to her being found guilty on four misdemeanor counts of lying to investigators. She was found innocent of murdering her 2 year old daughter Caylee.

Investigators grew rightly suspicious when it was discovered that Casey Anthony had waited a month before reporting her daughter missing to police. Further, her stories as to what could have happened to little Caylee were wildly inaccurate. Still, there was no definitive evidence uncovered linking her directly to the murder of Caylee.

In the book, Baez shares that Anthony was hiding out in New York following her acquittal of murder. She remained up north away from Florida until she had to return to serve probation for unrelated charges.

Baez reports falling into a depression in the aftermath of the trial, and says he found it hard to find joy in his wife’s pregnancy. While he criticizes Circuit Judge Belvin Perry's rulings during the trial, he is happy that the judge allowed him to pick a fair jury.

Writes Baez, "The public may have been convinced that I was an idiot but I let it all roll off my back.”